Storytime
by ManaketeSmoocher
Summary: [i don't even know what to call this tbh... it's just my pokemon OCs but as humans in a high school settingish] When your older twin brothers get in a fight you're probably going to want to curl up and hide until one of them maybe decides to tell you a story. Or something. (I'm? so bad at summaries) (Ralts family fic) (tiny bits of detail inside)


_**Human AU + high school thingy yeah**_

 **Characters:**

 **Noel - Male Gardevoir**

 **Yule - (Male) Gallade**

 **Eve - Female Ralts**

 **Aubergine - Nonbinary Absol**

 **Note: Noel and Yule are twin brothers. Eve is their recently adopted sister.**

* * *

From all the way up in her room, Eve could hear the front door of the mansion slam open. She yelped, her hands snapping to cover her ears. Though she'd only lived with her new family for a precious few months, she could pretty safely assume that she was about to overhear a rather heated argument between her (much) older brothers.

"- are you fucking cra-"

"Language, Yule." Noel sounded rather calm, but if one knew him they would clearly hear the frustration in his voice.

"Fine! Are you out of your goddamn mind!?" Noel narrowed his eyes, but let it slide. "You know-"

"I know Aubergine is my friend, and I owe it to them that I'm still alive." Yule growled, hating being interrupted.

"He just wants to get into your pants!" Noel was shocked by this exclamation, and his cheeks flushed a rosy red. Yule continued to speak before he could say anything. "As if it isn't bad enough that he brings disaster everywhere he goes!"

"First of all, Aubergine uses they/them pronouns, and second, it's not their fault." Noel snapped, ignoring the first thing Yule had said. The two of them were barely even inside the house, their argument had slowed them down so much. Yule slammed the door shut.

"Noel, he's- they're bad news. You don't think it's weird at _all_ that he told Sam to start preparing her grandma's funeral the day before she died?" Noel began walking towards the stairs, but Yule followed. "It doesn't really feel like a coincidence that those bookshelves fell down right as you were walking by so he just _happened_ to be in the proper place to save you by shoving you against a wall."

"It was the most convenient way to get me out of danger, and it's not Aubergine's fault that Humphrey tripped and knocked the shelf over." Noel was only frustrated more by Yule's pronoun misuse, but then was not the time to try and fix it.

"Oh please, just because he didn't personally knock it over doesn't mean he didn't have anything to do with it. You shouldn't be hanging out with him, especially considering all the times he just _happens_ to be around any time something goes wrong!" Noel stopped at the bottom of the stairs, spinning around to glare at his brother.

"What is wrong with you?" Yule looked shocked.

"What's- I'm just trying to protect you!"

"Protect me from what, my best friend? What's your problem? I'm not trying to keep you away from anyone you hang out with!"

"Well I don't hang out with freaks!"

"Oh, so now you're calling them a freak." Noel crossed his arms over his chest.

"You can't just- you're going to get seriously hurt because of him one day! I should be the one asking what the fuck is wrong with you!"

"What happened to the brother who used to tell me I could be and do whatever I wanted, as long as it made me happy? I haven't seen him in a long time."

"Shut up." Yule was shaking slightly.

"It's funny how he decided not to come back, even with a new sibling to look after."

"Noel, shut up."

"I'm glad I don't need him anymore, because I don't think he's ever coming back."

A distinct smacking sound rang out through the house, and Noel held a hand to his stinging cheek in shock. Yule looked surprised by his own actions, and his face filled with regret. He held his shaking hands close to his body, and both of them stared at each other with wide eyes. Noel was the first to lower his gaze, down to the floor.

"Noel, I-I didn't mean to-"

"I don't want to speak to you." He turned around, slowly walking up the stairs. It wasn't until he was out of sight that Yule found his voice again.

"... I didn't want to hit you…"

Yule let out a long sigh. Normally he would stay frustrated for hours after an argument, especially one with his older twin, but the way that one had turned out only left him feeling upset with himself. Meanwhile, Noel made his way to his room, intending to calm his mind with some heavy reading. As he approached his door, however, his eyes caught on a different one nearby. His face fell as he realized that this argument hadn't been private.

"Oh, Eve…" He turned away from his own door and knocked on his recently adopted sister's door. There was no answer at first, so he identified himself. "Eve, it's Noel. I just wanted to check on you, I'm sorry you had to hear that. I can leave you alone if you wish."

"N-no, come in." He barely heard her muffled response, but opened the door when he realized what she had said.

The young girl was curled up on her bed, hugging her pillow close to her chest. She was quivering, obviously shaken by the argument. Noel sat beside her with guilt evident on his face. He rubbed her back gently, not sure what he should say, so he apologized once more. The two of them stayed on the bed for a long while, Eve moving to curl up against his chest after a few minutes. Her breathing had calmed considerably by the time she spoke.

"Is your cheek okay?" Her voice was soft, and Noel subconsciously reached up to touch said cheek. It still stung a little.

"Yes, it's fine. I'm just surprised. He's never hit me before." Eve sniffed, and Noel shushed her. "He won't do it again, don't worry. I'm fine." He kissed her head. "We shouldn't be keeping you up so late. After all, little five year old children shouldn't stay up past ten!" Eve laughed weakly.

"Will you tell me a story?" Noel blinked, surprised by the request.

"What story do you want to hear?" He started searching his mind for children's stories he'd heard over the years.

"Make one up." Noel stopped at that.

"Ah." Not feeling the most creative at that moment, there was only one story he could think to tell.

"Once upon a time… there were two brothers born. The older twin was rather shy, and had trouble fitting in. Let's call him Gardevoir." Eve nodded quietly as Noel took a moment to think, not noticing the door move slightly. "His younger brother, Gallade, took to protecting him from the harsh words of their peers."

"How come people didn't like Gardevoir?"

"Well, he…" Noel glanced down at his lap. "Most people thinks it's weird for boys to wear dresses and do ballet." He fiddled with the hem of his own dress.

"I bet Gardevoir is super pretty." Eve pouted, and Noel smiled at her.

"Well, Gardevoir's parents didn't like how he dressed. Luckily for him, they weren't around very much. Gallade… grew to resent their parents for their absence. He was always very angry as a child, and he would use his anger to keep bullies away from Gardevoir." Noel checked to see if Eve had begun to doze off, but she was fully attentive.

"The boys grew older together, meeting more people. Gallade made many new friends, and was very popular, but Gardevoir still didn't have many friends. He preferred to read books. As they grew older, though, people stopped bullying Gardevoir." Eve clapped slightly.

"Why though?"

"Well, when people grow up, they mature, and they all realized there was no benefit to making fun of someone for the way they dress" Eve nodded, and Noel continued.

"Without anyone bullying Gardevoir, Gallade had no one to take his anger out on. He spent hours practicing with his sword in an attempt to release this anger, but it was never enough."

"Poor Gallade…" Eve mumbled.

"Well, one day Gardevoir made a friend. Let's call them Absol." Eve's face brightened. "But Absol had a terrible reputation. They could see into the near future, but all they could see was disaster. This brought them a very bad reputation, because they were always showing up near unfortunate occasions."

"I can kind of see the future! But only little things. Like someone I know is gonna be really happy soon." Noel smiled.

"Well, Absol could never see happy things in the future. Many people mistrusted them, but they also scared people off because of their reputation. Gallade didn't trust Absol at all. He was always wary of new people, especially when it concerned Gardevoir. Now, Gardevoir was just happy to have a friend, but Absol did tend to drag him into unfortunate situations."

"But shouldn't Gallade also be happy that Gardevoir has a friend?"

"... I don't know." There was a pause. "Gallade had been somewhat distant, since people stopped bullying Gardevoir. The two of them didn't speak much to each other until Absol came along, because Gallade had been so focused on his sword fighting and his anger that he didn't have time to spend time with his brother."

"Was Gardevoir lonely?"

"... Yeah. I… He was." Eve hugged him. "He was even excited when Gallade walked over to talk to him after he saw him with Absol." Noel sighed. "Then the first thing he told him was not to spend time with his only friend. They argue a lot now, even after having a new little sister to take care of and love." Noel left a light kiss on Eve's forehead.

"The end?" Eve asked, not satisfied.

"Well…" He sighed. "Not all stories have good endings, but I hope this one isn't one of them. The story isn't finished just yet, after all." She seemed more satisfied with that answer.

"What about Gallade? Does Gardevoir still love his brother?"

"I think… Both brothers still love each other very much, they just have a hard time showing it. Gardevoir knows Gallade is just trying to look out for him, but he's not helpless anymore. He can make his own choices and spend time with whomever he pleases." Noel tucked Eve under the covers.

"What if Gallade is just scared?" She mumbled. "Maybe he feels like Gardevoir hates him and that's why he's spending all his time with Absol. And he just doesn't wanna lose him…" Noel paused.

"I don't think Gardevoir ever thought about it like that." He pulled her hair out of her eyes and kissed her forehead. "But I do know he would want his little sister to go to sleep right now." Eve giggled, shaking her hair back into her face.

"Goodnight, Noel." She mumbled, turning onto her side.

"Goodnight, Eve."

Noel stood from the bed, sending one last glance at his sister before turning the lights on and leaving the room, gently closing the door. He sighed, resting his head against the door for a moment before turning away and being startled by the sight of Yule leaning against the wall. Judging by the fact that the door had been cracked open, Noel realized he must have been listening.

"Oh, Yule." Noel subconsciously reached up to where Yule had hit him earlier. It didn't hurt anymore- not physically at least. "How long were you listening for?"

"I- from the start of your 'story.'" Noel noticed his hands shaking as he discreetly tried to wipe his eyes. His face softened.

"Yule…" He stepped closer to him.

"I-I really am sorry, I-" His voice cracked as he reached up as if to touch Noel's cheek, but he closed his hand, bringing it close to his body. "I don't know what happened, I just-"

"No, it was… I said some harsh things, too." Yule didn't meet his eyes. "I… I didn't mean it. That I don't need you."

"It's true, though. You don't need me to protect you anymore." Noel put his hand on Yule's arm, feeling him shaking.

"You're right, I don't need you to protect me, but that doesn't mean I don't need my brother."

Noel bridged the gap between them, pulling his younger twin into a hug. He rubbed his back, saying nothing about how much the other was trembling or the tears leaking onto his clothes. They broke apart after a while, though both seemed somewhat reluctant to let go. Yule spoke first.

"Eve was right. I'm just… scared I'm going to lose you."

"I wasn't lying earlier. I… I do know you care about us. And I still love you, you're my only brother. I know you have… a lot of trouble, with your emotions, so I shouldn't be so…"

"No, I need to work on myself, it's not your fault." Noel nodded quietly, and Yule sighed.

"I know I'm not very good at expressing myself, and that tends to frustrate you." He nodded.

Yule pulled Noel into another hug, and Noel hadn't even realized he was tense until he began to relax. He hugged back after a moment's hesitation, and the two just stood there for a while. Noel was amazed that he'd forgotten how affectionate his brother was until then, and he had to hold back laughter. When they separated once more, they smiled a little.

"Do you still read? We used to do that together when we were younger."

"I haven't been lately, but I think it'd be fun to do that again, if you're offering."

"I think I am."

And they did.

* * *

 _ **Word Count: 2,221**_

 **I dunno, somehow I've been playing a lot of Pokemon Y even tho I have moon. My OCs are pulling at my heartstrings**

 **Feel free to ask me about them? There's a lot more to them than I've written here lmao**

 **also don't even talk to me about egg groups Noel and Aubergine are gonna get married**


End file.
